Newcomer makes a splash on Singles’ Day as Chinese smartphone makers tighten grip on Indonesian market

Oppo spin-off Realme soars on Indonesian Singles Day sale.

A relatively new Chinese smartphone brand, Realme, rode the wave of the recent 11/11 shopping festival in Indonesia to make a splash. It said it was the top-most bought phone that day, soaring past sales form Samsung and Xiaomi, two of the more established brands popular with Indonesian smartphone users.

But the strategy of selling hardware at low-profit margins has also come under question. Xiaomi, which recently went public, did so by saying that it plans to monetize its community of users through added services, and that hardware is not its end game. No Chinese phone maker to date comes close to the level of profitability of Apple — but as a result, Apple also doesn’t have a strong presence in emerging markets.